Process of and apparatus foe sugar making



(No Model.) 2 SheetsSheem 1.

- W. BAUR PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR SUGAR MAKING. No. 585,374.

Patented June 29, 1897.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

W. BAUR. PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR SUGAR MAKING.

No. 585,374. Patented June 29, 1897.

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NITED STATES PATENT rricn.

WVILHELM BAUR, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR SUGAR-MAKING.

SPECIFICATIbN forming part of Letters Patent No. 585,374, dated June 29, 1897. Application filed July 9, 1896. Serial No. 598,539. (No model.)

used for clarifying and purifying certain solutions and are subsequently precipitated and removed.

The object of my inventionis to utilize these precipitations which heretofore have been waste substances, and said object is attained by reburning them, whereby they are converted into the original forms of the substances, whereby they may be again used as in the first instance and also during the process of said reburning to obtain for reuse the gas necessary to precipitate said substances from their original solutions once more, thereby effecting what may be termed a continuous process of use and reuse.

To this end my invention consists in the process and the constructions and combinations of devices whichIshall hereinafter fully describe, and point out in the claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section of my apparatus. Fig. 2 is a cross-section of the same on line y y of Fig. 1.

A represents an ordinary screw conveyer, into which the precipitated substance, after being separated in a filter-press or similar apparatus from the liquid in which it is held in solution, is dropped and by which it is transported and delivered to a mixer B. This mixer consists of an ordinary tank having a vertical shaft 0, provided with a suitable driving mechanism D.

To the shaft 0 is attached a horizontal arm E, from which depend fingers F, which pass on each side of vertical fingers G, rising from the bottom of the tank B. This device keeps the material of an even consistency.

Attached to the lower end of shaft 0 is a vertical scroll or conveyer H, of suitable length and pitch, and operating within a shell or casing I, the upper end of which opens into the mixer-tank B, but the bottom is closed, with the exception of several small holes'J, through which the material is forced.

In the operation of said feeder and mixer the vertical shaft 0, being rotated, causes the feed-scroll II to carry downwardly the material from the bottom of the tank B to the bottom of the shell I and to force it through the holes J in long strips. By revolving the shaft 0 faster or slower any required amount may be continuously fed, thereby preventing caking. A

K is the drier. It consists of a drum made of any suitable material. opening in this drum the lower end of the shell I communicates, whereby the material is supplied to said drum.

L is a shaft Within the drum, having projecting arms M, whose sweep is somewhat less than the radius of the drum K. Said shaft has also a suitable driving arrangement, (represented generally by N.) To the ends of the projecting arms M are fastened strips of iron or any suitable material 0. These are so bent or curved as to form the threads of a screw. In the operation of this drier the shaft L being turned causes the strips 0 to revolve and thereby work any substance from the inlet end to the outlet end. In the revolving of these strips and owing to their presenting a fiat surface to the material they pick it up and carry it almost one-half way around and then drop it in fine particles, whereby it is thrown into the path and subjected to the action of the hot gases passing through the drier, and is also broken up into fine particles.

The drier is set at a suitable downward inclination in the direction in which the material is carried, and it communicates at its upper end with the stack S.

P is a hopper at the discharge end of the drier, and said hopper discharges into the kiln Q, which may be constructed in the manner common to the cylinders of rotary furnaces, and is here shown as consisting of a cylindrical shell of any suitable material and provided with a fire-brick lining, the said WVith a suitable cylinder being open at both ends and having a longitudinal inclination in the direction opposite to the inclination of the drier above. This kiln is represented as supported and rotating upon suitable rollers in the manner common to such f u mace-cylinders. The material being fed to theupper end of the kiln is caused to move slowly down and come in contact with the intense heat entering in at the lower end.

The fire -brick lining of the cylinder is made up of properly-constructed segments fitting closely together, and said segments 011 their inner surfaces are provided with ribs or projections R, which serve to keep the material constantly stirred and agitated, so that each particle may be brought into contact with theheat, thus producing an even quality of material. The segments are keyed together, and at their backs they are provided with grooves r, leaving air-spaces between them and the outside shell of the kiln or cylinder, the object of these air-spaces being to allow a freer expansion and contraction of the iron shell, preventing the cracking of the lining and at the same time increasing the non-conductivity of the lining. The projections R of the fire-brick lining do not extend'throughout the whole length of the kiln, but terminate short of the fire-chamber, as is shown. This is for. the purpose of keeping the material agitated only at such a place where there is no intense heat and thus avoiding clinkering.

Z is the fire box or chamber, and T is here represented as a hydrocarbon-burner.

U is the discharge from the lower end of the kiln by which the wagon W is loaded, and said discharge is controlled by a damper V. The wagon fits closely under the delivery-opening to prevent as much as possible any air from entering at this point, and during the change of wagons the damper V is closed for the same reason. For a like reason namely, to prevent air-leaks into the kiln-the kiln-cylinder is fitted very closely into the masonry or arches of brickwork both at its upper and its lower end, at which points it is surrounded by segment-plates X,which are fitted by bolts passing into elongated slots 50 in such a manner that said plates may be fitted up closely as annular rings to the body of the kiln-cylinder and thereby make it substantially airtight. Thus only such air is admitted as is necessary to the combustion, and as this air is admitted at the proper point in the fire-box it is capable of exact control, thereby concentrating to a maximum degree the carbonicacid gas which my invention contemplates shall be saved for reuse, and to this end I have here shown a pipe Y leading from the hopper P to the carbonic-acid pump, (unnecessary herein to show,) and by means of which the carbonic-acid gas from this apparatus may be withdrawn for reuse in the precipitation of the materials used in clarifying the solutions in the first instance.

In order to prevent the material from having any tendency to stick within the rotary kiln,l provide the exterior of the cylinder with projections g, which are adapted to come successively in contact with the spring knockerarm q, whereby said arm delivers a blow on the exterior of the cylinder and thus tends to free any material which may be sticking to its walls.

In case only the kiln portion of the apparatus be desired for use I have onlyto admit the material to be burned through a controllable opening 19 in the top of the hopper P, so that it will be delivered directly to the kiln.

For the mere purpose of illustration and in I,

order that the essential object of my invention may be understood I may state that I particularly intend to use this apparatus and process in connection with the manufacture of sugar. In this art oxid of lime, strontium, or similar materials are used for clarifying or purifying the solution, and after their work has been performed they must be gotrid of, and this is done by precipitating them with carbonic-acid gas and heat, &c. The solution is then filtered, and the resultant precipitate, which is now a carbonate of lime or strontium or hydrate of lime or strontium, &c., is usually a waste product. It is this material which I use in my apparatus, so that I reconvert it into oxid of lime, strontium, &c., for use again, and I take the carbonicacid gas generated in this burning and augment it by that produced by the fuel used, said carbonic-acid gas being withdrawn for the purpose of reuse in precipitating the oxid of lime, which is used again for the purpose of clarifying the sugar solution. Thus by my process and apparatus the lime, strontium, &c., is used over and over again, and the carbonic-acid gas also.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The improvement in the method of manufacturing sugar, &c., which consists in delivering the precipitated substances, such as carbonate of lime, or strontium, barium, &c., used in the purifying and clarifying of the saccharine solution, directly into a substantially closed vessel and subjecting them to the action of a gradually-increasing heat while the said substances are in agitation whereby their confined carbonic-acid gases are liberated and the said substances reburned and converted into their original forms, such as oxid of lime, or strontium, barium, &c., for use again, and simultaneously withdrawing the liberated carbonic-acid gases, augmented by that produced by the fuel, and continuously reusing such gases with the converted substances, resulting from the reburning of the precipitated substances, thereby making a continuous and uninterrupted process of use and reuse of both the converted material and the said liberated gases.

2. An apparatus for utilizing waste sub stances precipitated in the manufacture of sugar, &c., consisting of an agitating and feeding device, a stationary drier provided with a spiral agitator, said drier communicating with a stack at one end and with an inclined rotatable kiln at its opposite end, a fire-box opening into the kiln at its lower end, a separate pipe or passage whereby an artificial draft may be induced to withdraw the liberated gases for reuse, and a valve-controlled discharge at the lower end of the kiln.

3. An apparatus for utilizing waste substances precipitated in the manufacture of sugar, &c., consisting of a mixer to which the substances are supplied, an inclined drier provided with interior rotating agitators and adapted to receive the substances from the mixer, an inclined rotary cylinder forming a kiln and adapted to receive the substances from the drier, having ribs on its interior extending longitudinally and terminating short of the fire-chamber end, and means for heating said kiln.

4. An apparatus for utilizing waste substances precipitated in the manufacture of sugar, &c., consisting of a mixer to which the substances are supplied, an inclined drier provided with interior rotating agitators and adapted to receive the substances from the mixer, an inclined flue including a rotary kiln fitted closely thereto and communicating through a passage at one end with the drier and having a fire-chamber at the other, and having interior projections extending from the head or receiving end toward and terminating short of the fire-chamber end, and a means for withdrawing the gases from said kiln for use again.

5. In an apparatus for utilizing waste substances precipitated in the manufacture of sugar, 850., a mixing-tank having a rotating shaft provided with fingers operating past stationary fingers within the tank, a tight casing communicating with the bottom of said mixing-tank and having holes in its lower end, and a feed screw or scroll on the rot-ating shaft and operating within the casing whereby the material from the mixer is forced out through the holes in the casing.

6. In an apparatus of the character herein described, a kiln forming a part of the flue through which the heated gases and products of combustion must pass, said kiln comprising a cylinder mounted and adapted to be rotated and having a lining provided with interior projections extending from the head or receiving end of the cylinder, but a part of the way toward the discharge or fire-chamber end thereof.

7. In an'apparatus of the character herein described, a kiln forming a part of the flue through which the heated gases and product-s of combustion must pass, said kiln comprising a cylinder mounted and adapted to be rotated and having a lining provided with interior projections extending from the head or receiving end of the cylinder but a part of the way toward the discharge or fire-chamber end thereof, and formed with grooves on its back leaving spaces between itself and the cylinder-walls.

8. In an apparatus of the character herein described, a rotating cylinder or kiln, and the means for fitting it closely in the flue masonry or arches at each end thereof, consisting of the radially-adjustable segmental plates adapted to be set up close to said cylinder whereby air-leaks at these points are avoided.

9. In an apparatus of the character herein described, a rotating cylinder or kiln fitting closely in the flue masonry or arches at each end thereof, radially-adjustable segmental plates adapted to be set up close to said cylinder whereby leaks at these points are avoided, and a means for withdrawing the gases from said kiln for use again.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

WVILHELM BAUR.

WVitnesses:

S. H. NoURsE, JEssIE O. Bnomn. 

